From the Brink of Disaster
by UnknownFigment
Summary: Palpatine is dead, and the Empire will never come into being. At first, the Jedi rejoice, but slowly it becomes clear that things have gone too far to be fixed by one death. RotS AU, because there aren't enough already.
1. Ripples

**Author's Note: This is inspired by Follow the Light, and heavily influenced by Yoda's Shadow. **

**It was originally just an AU that branched off just before Mace's death, but I couldn't do anything that simple. Hence this first chapter. I'm not entirely happy with it, but it serves its function. **

**The first scene is just before the party storms the palace on Naboo, as an extension of the scene where Qui-Gon kneels down and tells Anakin to hide when they get inside. The others should be recognizable, even if they're slightly different.**

* * *

Chapter 1: Ripples

Qui-Gon started to stand up, but he hesitated. This was not the best time for a full discussion of Jedi philosophy, but his instincts were telling him to try.

He trusted his instincts. They'd never led him astray.

So he knelt back down in front of the boy and ignored the impatient looks from the others.

"Anakin. What we're doing is dangerous. Any of us could die. If that happens, remember this: It is the will of the Force. Do not grieve, no matter who it is. It does not do to care too much. Attatchment is a path to evil."

He stood up again, and drew his lightsaber. The group took the hint, and they moved out.

* * *

"It must be difficult to be a Jedi. To be unable to go where you want, do what you like..." Padme trailed off into silence.

Anakin looked away from her. "Those aren't the hard part."

"They aren't? Then what is?"

He looked down at his food. "The hardest part is releasing attatchments."

"What do you mean?"

"A Jedi does care for anyone. It leads to the dark side. I... I find that near impossible."

"They care for nothing at all? That doesn't sound like what I know."

"They care about truth, justice, freedom. They care about the galaxy. Never about individuals."

"And you can't do that?"

"I care about the galaxy. I can't stop caring about those important to me."

"Your master?"

"Yes, and others. I still love my mother, I still miss Obi-Wan, I-" He broke off, and glanced at her.

Most people would have ignored that glance. Most would have dismissed it as unimportant. Across the galaxy, very few would find it at all significant.

Padmé had spent the last decade learning to read expressions. She could read emotions hidden deeply behind walls and locked doors.

This one was in the open. This one begged for understanding.

He loved her. It was as clear as if he'd said it.

* * *

Anakin held his mother's body, and he wept.

When the tears were merely salt on his cheeks, he laid her tenderly down and stood up.

The Sandpeople would die for what they had done.

The men, the warriors, were merely corpses in his trail. He had reached the children, huddling in their tents. They would grow to be monsters. He should kill them while they were still defenseless.

No. Killing the men, that had been justice. That was acceptable. Killing the children... That would be vengence.

He turned around and left them shivering.

* * *

"Anakin?"

He turned to look at her. The crowd's roar faded into unimportance.

"Anakin... I love you, Anakin. And... I know you want to be loyal to the Jedi, but- We're about to die, Anakin. Could you say it, just once?"

He hesitated. Qui-Gon's last advice flitted through his head.

Did it matter anymore?

"I love you, Padmé."

* * *

"I'm going to end this!"

"No! He should stand trial!"

"He's too dangerous!"

"This is not the Jedi way!"

"I must!"

The universe seemed to freeze for a moment, as Mace's lightsaber descended. Anakin found himself staring, trying to decide.

He couldn't live without Padmé. He couldn't. All his efforts to root out his love for her had failed dismally. To have her die was unthinkable.

He moved the hand holding his lightsaber hilt towards Mace's, but still he hesitated.

He could feel Qui-Gon behind him, watching, judging.

Attatchment is a path to evil.

He couldn't let go of her.

Then the thought came, as if from somewhere else.

What would Padmé say to do?

There was no more doubt. She would say, let me die, so that the universe may live in peace. So that our child can grow without fear.

The Sith must die.

His hand completed its motion, poised to sever Mace's hand, but his blade was off. Mace's wrist passed through only air, and his blade crashed into the Sith. Palpatine, his friend the Dark Lord, cried out in pain and exploded.

It wasn't a very big explosion. It knocked the Jedi down, it carried traces of Force Lightning, but it was bearable. It was nothing compared to Anakin's new burden.

If Padmé was destined to die, there was nothing he could do to prevent it. Not without Palpatine.


	2. Aftermath

**Author's Note: You guys do not know how excited I was every time I saw another person respond to this. You guys are the best.**

**Guest review: No, Qui-Gon still died. Pretty much all the major changes were shown or at least spelled out. The only thing that really changed was Anakin's attitude. **

**At least, until the last scene... **

**Anyway, on to the chapter!**

* * *

Chapter 2: Aftermath

Mace touched Anakin's shoulder. "Anakin. It's over. Well done."

Anakin didn't respond for a moment. He lay there, staring at Mace apathetically. Finally, he sat up.

"Palpatine's dead?" He sounded like knew it already, but he had to check.

Mace nodded. "His body vanished, but I know I got a killing blow. He's gone."

Anakin still didn't respond. Mace studied him for a minute.

"I'm going to tell the Senate what happened. You should go back to the Temple."

Anakin nodded. Mace turned his attention to locating his lightsaber, which had flown away when he was knocked over. Anakin didn't say anything until after he had found it.

"I shouldn't have come."

Mace straightened up and looked at him. "Why not?"

"I wasn't any help. I- It was almost too hard for me."

Mace paused for another moment. "I disarmed him and backed him into that corner just before you came in. He'd killed three Masters, he nearly killed me, and suddenly I could disarm him easily."

"What do you mean?"

"He wanted to appear helpless when you came in. It would have been much harder to subdue him without that."

Mace turned away to the three fallen masters, and knelt down beside them to confirm what he knew. The Sith had struck true, and all three were dead.

Anakin brushed past him, and left the room.

* * *

Mace had told him to go back to the Temple, but Anakin had no intention of doing that. There was only one place he was at all interested in being at right now.

His speeder was still waiting for him. He hopped in and flew off, driving at speeds reckless even for him. Angry shouts followed him, but he ignored them. He wasn't going to crash, and he didn't care about anyone's opinion of him right now.

Flying relaxed him. It was easier to immerse himself in the Force, forget everything else. He reacted to what happened around him without really processing it, instinctively dodging and weaving. When he reached Padmé's apartment, he almost wished it was a longer trip. Almost.

Mostly, he was just glad to be there.

Padmé hadn't noticed his speeder approaching. She was standing just beside the door, adjusting her cape. She turned when he came in.

"Anakin! I just got called to-" She stopped as he stepped towards her and hugged her fiercely. "Ani? What's wrong?"

"Palpatine's dead."

She pulled back and looked at him, her eyes wide. "What? What happened? Who-"

"He was the Sith Lord. Mace killed him."

Her mouth dropped partway open. "Palpatine- A Sith Lord? Truly?"

"I wish I could say no."

"How?"

"I don't know. I never suspected it."

"Nobody did. How did they find out?"

Anakin closed his eyes. "He told me he knew how to save you. He gave enough clues that I could piece it together."

"Oh, Anakin, that must have been so hard. I know you were always close to him..."

"It was hard. I'll survive."

Padmé didn't spend more time sympathizing. She could tell he didn't want it. "That must be what this emergency session is about. I got the call minutes ago, I was just about to leave."

"Mace said he'd speak to the Senate."

"Would you come with me, please? I need moral support."

He nodded. "Of course. Let's go."

* * *

The Senate was not happy. Anyone could have heard the discontented whispers, and Mace could feel the waves of annoyance through the Force as well. Speaking with politicians was never a Jedi's favorite job, and tonight was worse than usual. After all, he'd called them in from their evening engagements, and none of them wanted to hear more about the war. They waited, extremely impatient, for everyone to arrive.  
When they were all there, Mace moved the Jedi pod towards the center podium.

"It is my duty to inform you that Chancellor Palpatine is dead. This afternoon, it was revealed that he was the Sith Lord we have been searching for, and so I and three other Jedi Masters came to his office to arrest him. He resisted arrest, and in doing so killed the masters that came with me. In the end, I was able to subdue the Chancellor, but it was clear even then that it was impossible to capture him safely. I took it upon myself to execute him in the name of justice." He bowed slightly, and moved the pod back. There was a stunned silence from the entire Senate, then flurries of whispers as they tried to process this.

The Chancellor's aide recovered first. "Really, Master Jedi? Our own Chancellor, elected and endorsed by the entire Senate, a Sith? This is a farfetched tale. I assume you have proof?"

"Anakin Skywalker, who originally discovered the Chancellor's secret, can verify it."

"Ah. Of course. Do you have any more... substantial proof?"

"I do not understand. What more is required?"

"You see, Master Jedi, the late Chancellor told me, not too long ago, that he feared a plot by the Jedi to seize control of the Republic. He told me that you had grown fond of your military power, and you planned to kill him and take control of the Senate. Given your absolute lack of proof, aside from the testimony of another Jedi whose loyalties are suspect, I am forced to conclude his fears were well-founded."

"I do not tell a lie, Senator. I can show you the lightsaber wounds on my fellow Jedi, now unfortunately deceased."

"Who is to say that you yourself did not murder them in your lust for power?"

"The security tapes, then. Those should show the proof."

"Unfortunately the senator kept no cameras within his own office. Unless you can produce more solid evidence... The Chancellor's alledged weapon, perhaps?"

"It fell out a window during the course of the fight. I do not know where it is."

"How convenient. Under the circumstances, I am forced to place you and all your fellow Jedi under arrest for treason. Appropriate orders will be sent to the clone commanders. You will come quietly or you will be killed.

"WHAT?" Mace thundered. The Chancellor's aide did not even seem to notice. He was calmly pressing buttons, and Mace lost all his pod controlls.

There was nothing more to do. He sat down on one of the chairs, feeling utterly defeated.

In the Nubian pod, Anakin and Padmé looked at each other in horror.

* * *

Anakin paced through Padmé's apartment, while Padmé sat on the couch, looking pale.

"What are you going to do, Ani?"

He stopped. "I'm not going to turn myself in, but I... " He sat down opposite her, head in his hands. "I don't know what to do. I don't know what I want to do."

She came to sit by him. "We'll figure something out. We always have."

He looked up at her, and put his arms around her. "Of course we will. I just need time to think. Tomorrow, I'll have everything figured out."

* * *

Shaak Ti was practicing her forms when her comlink went off. She shut down her lightsaber and went to pick it up. "Master Ti."

"Shaak, this is Mace."

"Mace! How did your confrontation-"

"Palpatine was the Sith. He's dead, but he killed the others first. The Jedi are declared traitors and are to be arrested."

"What!?"

"Don't kill anyone. Don't let anyone be captured. You're in charge; I can't get to you and the rest of the Council's away. May the Force be with you."

"And you," she said automatically.

Her comlink faded to static. She stared at it for a long moment, then drew herself together. "Serra!"

The Jedi Knight shut down her lightsabers and came over. "Yes, Master?"

"We're leaving Coruscant, all of us. Inform the flight wing to start prepping all the ships we have with a hyperdrive. I'm going to give the general announcement."

"We're... What? What in space has happened, Master Ti?"

"I'm not sure. If Mace Windu escapes, he can tell us more. Until then, we follow his instructions."

"Yes, Master Ti."

* * *

Obi-Wan looked around and smiled. The droids were gone, driven off of Utapu. Grevious was dead. A clear victory for the Republic. He shut down his lightsaber and wandered over towards Cody.

Cody was conferring with someone by commlink, probably informing Coruscant of their success. He stopped a few feet away, waiting for him to be done. After this battle, commendations were definitely in order. Possibly even promotion.

No, he reminded himself. Clones didn't get promoted. They were trained to their positions, and they knew every bit of strategy to excell at their job. Nothing more.

Cody's conversation ended, and Obi-Wan stepped forward to congratulate him.

Cody spoke first. "Hello, sir. The droids are all gone. Well done. Ah- I regret to inform you that you're under arrest."

Obi-Wan froze for a moment, trying to figure out if he'd heard that last bit acurately.

"What?"

"New orders, Sir. You're to be placed under arrest. Your lightsaber, please?"

Obi-Wan still failed to move. He stared very hard at Cody, hoping that the commander would drop the punchline soon. He didn't. There was a rather awkward pause before Cody nodded a trooper forward to take Obi-Wan's lightsaber out of his unprotesting hand.

"This way, please, sir."

He followed, still dumbfounded. He probably wouldn't come back to himself for another hour or so.

Fortunately, instincts took over. They were walking beneath Grevious's ship when he jumped impossibly high, pulling his lightsaber to him. He landed on the ramp of the ship, and walked inside. With any luck, he'd have three minutes or so before they figured out where he'd gone and caught up with him.

Now he just had to figure out why his clones had tried to arrest him.

* * *

Padmé slept fitfully that night, and half the times she woke up, she heard Anakin pacing in the living room. It was confusing; three times she'd wake up to him apparently asleep beside her, and then the next two he'd be pacing. The first time, she tried to convince him to sleep. After that she just gave up.

When she woke up for good, he was up, meditating on the balcony. She came outside, sat, with quite a lot of difficulty, on the floor beside him, and waited for him to acknowledge her.

It took him much longer than normal. Finally, he opened his eyes and smiled at her.

"Did you figure everything out?"

"Not everything. But I know what I'm going to do." He rose easily, then smiled down at her struggles to get up and reached out with the Force to help. She rolled her eyes at him.

"As a matter of fact, I am still capable of standing up without help."

"Of course you are, Madame Senator."

"Stop that."

He grinned at her. She rolled her eyes again, and turned to go inside. He followed her, and when she looked back his expression was serious again.

She sat down on the sofa, picked up a data pad, sighed, and put it back down again.

"What's wrong, Angel?"

"I checked my messages this morning. All the best Senators are resigning in protest of yesterday's announcement, and Jedi all across the galaxy are being arrested and rounded up as we speak. Some of them... It's said that some of them have been killed, even. It's horrible."

He was quiet for a minute. "Do you want to hear my plans?"

"Of course. Always."

He sighed, and pulled his lightsaber off his belt. "I'm going to leave the Jedi. It's hard to think of leaving all of them to their fate, particularly now, when everything's in upheaval, but..." He glanced at her, then looked back down at his lightsaber. "I thought long and hard about my priorities last night. I joined the Jedi to do good, but now... They'll be too busy surviving to do anybody much good. And..." Now he turned back, and looked her straight in the eyes. "I want to spend every moment I can with you. I want to raise our daughter, I want to see all her first words and first steps. I want to be there, with both of you. I never was a very good Jedi, but maybe, just maybe, I can be a good father." He tossed his lightsaber onto the table in front of him and sat, glancing at her occasionally, waiting for her reaction.

Padmé hadn't expected any of that. She sat for a moment in quiet shock, looking down at the lightsaber now sitting beside her data pad.

"Maybe... If I resigned, in protest, like everyone else... You and I could both get lost in the chaos. We could slip off to Naboo, and you could teach flying, maybe, and I could take care of our _son_, and we could be... Normal. Happy."

He smiled down at her. "You would be willing to do that?"

"Would you?"

He leaned down to kiss her. "I think we have a plan, then."


	3. Scatter

**Author's Note: This would have been up sooner, but then Derry asked some very good questions, and I spent a long time trying to answer them. I don't think I did a very good job, but I couldn't cut out the subplot without losing almost all of my plans. Which I maybe should have done... I don't know. It's not too late, I'll keep thinking it over. For now, the next chapter.**

**Also! As I was writing this, I realized that the last chapter had an Obi-Wan shaped hole in it, so I plugged the hole. It's one of the last sections now. Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 3: Scatter

Shaak Ti eased her fighter into the hyperspace ring and pulled the lever. As the stars faded into lines, she sat back with a sigh.

Everyone was safely away. No one had died, no one had been left behind. A few had been sent to find public transport off of Coruscant, but all of them were properly disguised. They would be fine.

Probably.

But worrying wouldn't help them one bit. They were in the capable hands of the Force now, and she had no doubts that they'd make it through.

The starfleet techs had tried very hard to fit everyone on their larger ships. It just hadn't been feasible. They had loaded all their hyperdrive-capable ships up beyond the brim, sent all these small fighters out, and still they'd been forced to call a halt.

It had been a challenge, getting everything and everyone out. Even if they had enough ship space for everyone, there were still questions about objects. The Jedi were supposed to avoid personal possessions, but every Jedi had a reason to take something, whether that something was of personal or ceremonial importance. She'd been forced to put a blanket ban on anything too large to fit in a carrysack.  
Shaak vaguely realized that her thoughts were drifting. It was easier than wondering why they'd left their home so abruptly, and why they were traitors to the Republic they'd always served.

When Mace arrived, she'd have some questions.

For now, though, there was nothing she had to do, nobody she could contact.

She settled into the best meditative pose she could in a starfighter, and dropped into meditation.

* * *

"Ani?"

Anakin looked up from his resignation request to find Padmé watching him.

"Yes?"

"Are we doing the right thing? I mean, the Jedi are in trouble, they're going to need you, and... I feel like I'm running away. I'm resigning right when I can do the most good, swaying public opinion back towards the Jedi, asking for them to reconsider their arrest order... I've been trying to decide whether I should resign for a while now, but now... It's all so much more complicated."

She sat down beside him, and he put his arms around her. "It's not that bad," he said. "Most Jedi out there could evade capture with just a minute's warning, and any of them could escape with no trouble. Grevious is dead, the war's as good as over. Worst-case senario, the Order disbands and every Jedi goes his own way. They'll be fine. Besides, we've given a lot to the galaxy over the years. There will always be some reason we have to stay. Right now, there's one very good reason to go."

"Maybe you're right, but I still don't like it."

"It's just for a few years. The galaxy can get along without us for that long."

* * *

Obi-Wan flew away from Utapu in Grevious's ship, still reeling. His clones had tried to arrest him. His _clones_ had tried to _arrest_ him.

In the name of the Force, why would they _do_ that?

Yoda would have answers. Yoda always had answers. It was by far the best place to go. Let's see, last he'd heard Yoda was on Kashyyyk, fighting against the Trade Federation with a group of clones...

_His_ clones had tried to arrest him.

Would Yoda still be there? No way of telling, unless he dropped out of hyperspace to comm him.

Maybe it would be better to go back to Coruscant. He might be able to get answers there, and it was certainly closer than Kashyyyk...

Then again, his clones had tried to arrest him. Coruscant had lots of clones.

Other people's clones might try to arrest him, too.

So no Coruscant. Kashyyyk was out for the same reason. That didn't leave him with a lot of options. He keyed up a list of nearby planets, and skimmed over it for any potential options.

About halfway down the list, he found one. Alderaan. Bail Organa's homeworld. Organa would probably be helpful, and he could call Yoda easily enough. Depending on _why_ his clones had tried to arrest him, Organa might arrest him too, but at least he'd probably explain why first, and whatever he had for security would be easy enough to escape from.

It wasn't a perfect choice, but it was close to him, and it was a pretty good choice. He set his nav computer to take him there, and leaned back. Now was probably a good time to meditate.

Maybe even figure out _why_ his clones had tried to _arrest him_.

* * *

Anakin looked over his resignation request again, and sighed. Maybe Padmé would feel better if he told her that they _couldn't_ contact the Jedi, even if he'd wanted to. He had no idea where they were going. Any true Jedi, anyone raised in the temple, would have known. Not him. The clever reference to a Jedi fairy tale was lost on him. He'd heard the tale, certainly, but he didn't remember any of the details.

No. No, let her believe they had a choice. He'd made the choice before he'd recieved the message, anyway.

He should finish this form. It was the teensiest bit pointless. Jumping through hoops, making it official... There were no Jedi left at the Temple. Nobody would see his request. In all honesty, if he believed otherwise, he wouldn't send it.

He sighed again, and leaned back over it. Better hurry, or they'd end up missing their trasport.

* * *

**AN: I totally fudged the relative locations of the planets. I figured it was all at least plausible, anyway. **


	4. Communications

**AN: Sorry about the radio silence. I've been hit by a strong bout of apathy. I hope it goes away soon, it's annoying. **

**Also: Don't take the numbers in this chapter very seriously. They don't mean much. **

**Derry: I admit your review originally sent me into defense mode, but your points were far too good for me to stay there. I'm still not sure I have good answers for them, but I'm making progress. **

* * *

Chapter 4: Communications

Shaak Ti settled into an orbit around Dagobah, and checked her sensors. Many of the ships had reached the system already, though it looked like most of the larger freighters were still en route.

She flipped on her commlink. "Serra?"

"I'm glad you're here, Master Ti. Nearly all those who were on Coruscant have arrived. Not the freighters, obviously, but just about everybody else. There are a couple we're a bit worried about, but it's most likely they just took a more roundabout route. We've got some people trying to contact them through whatever bonds they have, and they haven't sensed any strong emotions, so we don't think they're having any difficulties. Your trip was uneventful?"

"Yes, thank you. Have you heard from any of the Jedi out on missions?"

"About half of them called to say they were on their way, and maybe a quarter of those have arrived. Several of the others were going to try to finish their missions before coming in, and I didn't have the authority to tell them otherwise."

"Master Windu isn't here yet?"

"We haven't heard from him at all."

"What about those we didn't have room for?"

"Most of them have checked in. Again, we're concerned about a couple of them, but not very."

"How many unaccounted for, total?"

"Probably five hundred. All of them accomplished Jedi Knights or Masters."

"None of the other council members have checked in?"

"Four of them have. Master Kenobi and Skywalker are still unaccounted for."

"Obi-Wan was on Utapu, I know that, but wasn't Anakin on Coruscant? I assumed he was on one of the starfighters."

"He was seen leaving the Temple not long after Master Windu. Nobody seems to know where he went."

"Well, he'll have to take care of himself. Do we have a base of operations?"

"Not yet. We thought about setting one up on the planet, but..."

"It's as bad as the story paints it?"

"Yeah. By the way, several Jedi wanted to congratulate you on coming up with that hint on where to go."

"Now we just hope that we've succeeded at keeping the story secret. I hesitate to say it's a good thing Dooku's dead, but at least it's useful right now."

"Yes, Master."

* * *

"We're sorry, Senator Organa is not available at this time."

"When will he be available, then?"

"The Senator has not informed us of his plans at this time. He is unavailable."

"Yes, you said." Obi-Wan grimaced. "Can I speak to the Queen, then?"

"The Queen is unavailable at this time."

"Fantastic. When you say 'unavailable', do you mean she's really unavailable, or you just don't want to let me talk to her?"

"We are not to disturb her."

"Same for the Senator?"

There was a pause. "The Senator is not on the planet at this time."

"Very well. Would you contact the Queen and tell her her husband's friend from Zigoola wishes to speak with her?"

There was another pause, and then the official came back. "Maintain your present orbit. We will contact you when we have an answer."

"Thank you."

* * *

"I hate this nose."

"Really? I think it suits you."

Anakin glared at Padmé for a bit. She utterly failed to notice, concentrating instead on her datapad.

"Can't I take it off? There's nobody in here."

"But someone might come in any time. You wouldn't want to be recognized."

He moved on to glaring at the wall, which also failed to notice.

"I could have shaved my head or something. Or anything."

"This way you look exactly like one of my secretaries. It's much safer."

"I still find that suspicious."

"Hm?"

"You just happen to have a secretary that looks almost exactly like me, _and_ just happen to have a nose to complete the look? Right."

"You should remember how many times I've had threats to my life. I've learned to keep disguises around."

"This thing doesn't even match your skin tone."

She didn't answer. He considered grumbling a bit longer, then discarded the idea as pointless. "When will we be there?"

"It'll be a while. Just get comfortable. Pacing doesn't help anything, and leaning against a wall is not the best way to get rest."

He didn't move. "Exactly how long is 'a while'?"

* * *

Obi-Wan's comm blinked, and he straightened up and pressed the button. The official's face came up in front of him.

"We have contacted the Queen. She instructed us to allow you to talk to her."

Obi-Wan nodded. "Thank you."

The official regarded him rather critically for a moment, then glanced down. "We are patching you through to the palace at this time."

This time Obi-Wan just nodded in acknowledgment. The official's face faded to static, then Queen Breha's face appeared.

"It's good to see you again. I'm sorry my husband wasn't here to greet you."

He smiled. "It's good to see you too, my lady. I'm sorry to bother you like this, but I have a request. I understand that you have a busy schedule, though, so I can leave if you'd prefer."

"Nonsense, we'll always have time for you." She paused. "I believe I can guess your request. You've been betrayed by your employers, and you want to know why."

"As insightful as ever, my lady. I had hoped you had information for me, but if you don't-"

"I believe I do. It'll be wonderful to spend some time catching up. I'll authorize your landing at the palace."

"Thank you, my lady, but as I said, I know you're very busy, and I wouldn't like to take up too much of your time."

"And as _I_ said, we'll always have time for you. I'll see you shortly."

She cut off the transmission, and Obi-Wan bit back another objection. After a moment, his instrument board pinged. He had been cleared for landing.

With a sigh, he pulled himself out of orbit and headed towards the palace.


	5. Solutions

**Sorry I took so long to update. Busy weekend followed by a lazy week. There was going to be another section, but I'm leaving again, and I wanted to get this to you first. **

**Also, becoming somewhat unsatisfied with the way this story's been going. Still going to finish it, still going to do the sequel, but at some point I'm going to redo some of the first few chapters. Probably leave most of it intact, but add a bit of action some places? Or at least move some of the action onscreen. Show Mace's adventures, a couple other things. The story as it stands fails at one of the basic things I set out to do, which is totally unsatisfactory. **

* * *

Chapter 5: Solutions

The ship shuddered slightly and Anakin jumped up from the chair. Padmé sighed. It had taken ten minutes to convince him to even sit down this morning. It probably would have taken longer if he hadn't spent the last three days pacing.

"We're there."

"We're in the system. It'll be a while before we reach land."

He ignored her, and picked up his pacing again.

"Why are you so tense, anyway? There's nothing going on."

"I hate waiting."

"You always do. This is more."

He just kept pacing.

"Come on, Anakin. Spill. What's bothering you?"

He stopped and looked at her intently. "I've had visions of your death. You're going to die. I can't prevent that."

She sighed, and started to speak, but he waved her into silence. "That's not the part that has me worried. I'm still worried about it, I'm still terrified by the idea, but it's sort of... Less immediate. I don't have dreams about it any more. It's not a constant, dark, presence in my head. I don't know what that means. I don't know anything anymore."

"Maybe you've accepted the fact that I'm not going to die?"

"I foresaw it, Padmé. I don't see the future often, but when I do, it always, always, comes true."

"Not this time."

"You can't know that. Nobody knows when they'll die."

"Then you can't claim to know it either."

* * *

The Queen didn't meet Obi-Wan's ship. She sent a protocol droid, who stepped forwards as soon as Obi-Wan came out of his ship.

"Good day, Sir. I am TX-397. The Queen asked me to escort you to the Royal Gardens. If you will come with me?" He led the way to a small, closed-in speeder.

"The Queen wishes me to apologize for failing to come herself. She did not specify why she could not, but I believe she was in some rather delicate negotiations when your ship was due. I hope you are not offended?"

"No, not at all."

"Oh, good. I would hate to think you offended, when you are to be a guest of the Royal Family..."

The droid prattled on in the manner of protocol droids everywhere. Obi-Wan eased back into an almost meditative state and listened for the rest of the ride.

* * *

The remaining refugees were slowly arriving, in ones and twos, and the freighters were coming in. Most of the remaining Knights and Masters had checked in, at least. Several of the other Council members had arrived to take some of the pressure off of Shaak Ti's shoulders. Things were beginning to come together.

All these ships certainly made for an impressive armada. Single-person starfighters, small shuttle-types, the freighters...

And now one capital ship.

"Look, I don't deny the thing could be useful, but how in space did you get it?"

"The clones were off fighting. It was easy."

Shaak sat back and stared at the ship. A single Jedi had brought it in. A young, inexperienced, cocky Jedi had had an idea, acted on it without thinking, and made this whole thing a lot more complicated.

"So you stole it. From the Republic."

"Who else would I steal it from? Besides, we're already outlaws, aren't we?"

"It's the principle of the thing. We didn't do anything wrong, before this."

"You agreed it'd come in handy, and they can't really get any madder at us than they are already, can they?"

"Look, the Republic is at war. A single capital ship could save countless lives."

"Thought you said Grevious was dead. You can't have much of a war without a general."

"That's not the point. You stole this thing. How did you manage piloting it, anyway?"

"That was easy. The clones were ordered to arrest us, but someone forgot the droids."

Shaak sighed. The right thing to do would be to get him to turn around and return that thing right now. There was no question about that. The right thing to do, and probably easiest all around...

But they did need a base of operations. Everyone was tired of staying in their tiny ships. Maybe they could just borrow it for a while...

Some little voice asked how exactly they planned to return it. She ignored it.

"Well, what's done is done. I'll speak with you about punishments later. Now let's get someone else on that thing before it crashes to the ground."

She could just imagine the boy grinning. "Yes, Master."

* * *

Obi-Wan had heard of the Aldera Botanical Gardens many times, even seen a holo or two, but he'd always privately believed that it couldn't be any better than the Room of a Thousand Fountains in the temple.

Now, he knew he had been mistaken.

The Gardens were perfectly designed. The first floor was a natural Alderaanian valley so beautiful Obi-Wan wondered if it had been transplanted from the wilderness somewhere. Above it, the building was full of balconies, floating like clouds, connected by transparisteel. Each balcony was another garden, filled with plants from Alderaan or another world. The whole thing was every bit as well done as the Room of a Thousand Fountains, and there were at least five times as many balconies.

If he'd been on his own, he would have forgotten his mission and spent the day exploring. Even remember his reasons, he regretted the necesity of hurrying. He caught only glimpses of the gardens on the way to a private turbolift, and had little more time to look on the way up to one of the larger balconies. TX-397 helpfully informed him that this was the Royal Balcony, which was sealed in for privacy and only used by guests of the royal family. Obi-Wan tried very hard to tune out the droid's voice and concentrate on the peace of the Gardens.

Then the doors opened and he saw the Queen. His fragil peace dissipated as he saw her serious expression.

"Your Highness, may I present your visitor. Visitor, Queen Breha Organa, of Alderaan."

"Yes, thank you, Tux. You may go." The Queen laid aside her needlework, but waited for the droid to leave before continuing. "It's good to see you again, Obi-Wan. Have you been enjoying the Gardens?"

"Very much. I should have expected Alderaan to have the best garden in the galaxy, but somehow it still came as a surprise."

"The entire planet is very proud of it. It's run entirely by volunteers, with hardly a droid worker in the place."

"I can see why." He sighed. "I wish this was just a social visit, my lady, but..."

"Of course. To business." She paused thoughtfully. "There's no delicate way to put this. On the nineteenth, the Jedi were accused of treason."

"Treason? How can that possibly be?"

"We were all astounded. There still aren't many details, but some things have come out. The Chancellor is dead. The Jedi are blamed. Clone troopers all across the galaxy have tried to arrest their Jedi."

"Tried?"

"Again, we haven't heard a lot, but it sounds like they've mostly failed. Many Jedi recieved warning and pulled out before the orders were issued to the clones, others escaped... We believe they're gathering somewhere, probably on the Outer Rim."

"How do you know that?"

"Ylenic was visiting me when this... event occured. Do you know him? He's been serving as our advisor these past few months, we'll miss him... He recieved a message. I don't know what it means, but he showed it to me. I can remember it."

"Go on."

She closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. "Brothers of Enderon, you are in danger. Go to the Last Planet." She opened her eyes again. "That was all."

Obi-Wan stared at a flower. "Ingenious. Shaak Ti sent it?"

"Yes. Do you understand it?"

"Any Jedi would, and nobody else. It's perfect."

"What does it mean?"

"It refers to a fairy tale. Enderon was accused of treason, and fled, or perhaps exiled himself. The Last Planet is another part of the tale. I can't tell you where it is, not if the Jedi are gathering there."

"No. Of course not."

"I must go to them. I wish I could have been there sooner."

"Of course. Obi-Wan... If you need a place to stay, you and your family are always welcome here. We could help you."

"Or perhaps we could drag you down with us."

The idea didn't faze her. "We could help you."

"You are most generous. I will consider your offer."

"That's all I ask. Safe travels to you."

"And you."

* * *

**AN: Just assume that there's some black formal wear called a 'tux' in the Star Wars universe. Also, I invented the Aldera Bontanical Gardens. It made sense, didn't it?**


	6. Overdue Explanations, Into the Sunset

**AN: It's been a while, but here's the conclusion! I'd say it's riveting, but it really isn't. You get two chapters for the price of one, though! Two very short, pretty awful chapters. Confession time: I wrote this in two days, just so I could get this over with and edit later.**

**Anyway, I'm glad this is finished. The whole piece is really aimed at setting up the second part, and it's done that effectively enough. Before I start the second part, though, I'm going to go back and edit this one, and probably work on another shortish project that's been rattling around. **

**Derry: You assume correctly. In my head, the senario played out something like this:**

**OBI-WAN: And now I will impart important truths of Jedi life through a fairy tale.**

**ANAKIN: Can I just get the short version?**

**As to the next question, you're right, the Jedi are much safer than they were in the movies, but they're still considered treasonous. The clones are still after them, but this time they're supposed to arrest them rather than kill them on sight. Puts the Jedi in a better situation. **

**Lastly, Unnamed Character can't be Ahkosa, because I've only ever read about her in fanfiction. I never actually saw anything she appeared in. I might bring him back as an OC, though. We'll have to see.**

**That was a long response. **

* * *

Chapter 6: Overdue Explanations

"But what will I say?"

"Whatever you like. They'll understand."

"Not at first!"

Anakin had calmed down. He was still tense, but then he never truly relaxed when someone else was flying.

Padmé liked to think she wasn't as tense as Anakin had been, but she doubted it. At least her reasoning was more solid.

"Why should they assume anything bad at first?"

She turned and stared at him incredulously. "I'm pregnant, Anakin. I'm very obviously pregnant. They did not receive wedding invitations. What conclusion do you think they'll come to?"

Anakin considered that. "Oh... I guess that could be a problem."

"And I thought my life was sheltered. Come on Anakin, don't you have any ideas?"

"You've been hiding it for months, haven't you?"

"I was in formal clothing all the time! It's not hard to hide when you can wear a cloak and eight layers wherever you go!"

"You couldn't wear one of those, make up some good excuse?"

"They'd probably notice anyway. They know me better and I'm farther along now. I thought about that. I'm pretty sure I can't just conceal it until I'm ready to tell, I'm pretty sure I can't stay out of sight somehow, I know they'll freak out as soon as they notice..."

"Are they weak-minded? I could mess with their minds, keep them from noticing..."

"Anakin! That's my parents you're talking about! We are not hypnotizing them, and that's final!"

"It would make things simpler."

"I would be against it even if it were far more necesary than this! You're talking about taking away their free will, even partially, even temporarily, so we can avoid some minor disappointment. What are you thinking?!"

"So the only consequence of their noticing will be minor disappointment, which we can easily soothe?"

Padmé glared at him. She felt rather manipulated, but he had a point. "Well... I guess so."

"There you go. Yes, they'll be shocked and disappointed and so on, but we have legitimate explanations for everything. Their surprise won't last long, and then they'll know everything and we'll just have to explain why they didn't recieve those wedding invitations you mentioned."

"I'd still rather avoid that moment..."

"We could wait until after the children are born. Then it would be possible to take the surprises one at a time."

"No. They'll notice I resigned in the news. They follow me pretty closely. If I don't contact them soon, they'll get worried."

"It's your choice. Come on, I think it's almost time to disembark."

* * *

Obi-Wan came out of his ship and looked around. He could feel Shaak's presence nearby, and after a moment he saw her lounging on a support pillar. She pushed off it, and walked forward. "Obi-Wan. Welcome to the Exile's Heart."

"An impressive place. I was unaware that the Jedi had a Star Destroyer in their hangar."

"Oh, it was brought in by a cocky young Jedi, all by himself. I'll show you around."

"I doubt there's a need, I've been on several before."

"Perhaps there's no need, but you have questions. I might as well show you around while answering them."

* * *

Chapter 7: Into the Sunset

_Fellow Council members:_

_I will not return soon. I am still on Coruscant, atoning for my failures. There is no need to worry about me. I am quite safe, and I believe I am doing more good here than I could anywhere else. The Force be with you all. _  
_-Mace Windu_

Obi-Wan put down the datapad and sighed. Another council member gone. Just seven of them left to rebuild the Jedi. Seven of the twelve, at a time when every hand was needed.

Only around fifty Jedi were still truly unaccounted for. Anakin was the only baffling one.

He should have shown up immediately. He should have been one of the first to Dagobah, he should have been in the middle of everything from the beginning. Instead, there was no word at all. He was captured, or maybe even dead. Obi-Wan didn't know. He had no way to find him. He didn't know anything.

That, more than anything else, was driving him crazy.

He needed to let go. Whatever Anakin was going through, he'd have to face it alone. The boy would turn up soon. Of course he would.

For now, Obi-Wan would watch the Jedi. He would do his duty.

* * *

The Concil met in a storage room, using boxes as chairs. It was a far cry from the Council Chambers in the Temple, but nobody really minded much. Their minds were on other things.

"Remain on this ship, we cannot. Be more connected to the galaxy, we must."

There was silence for a moment as everyone considered Yoda's words, then Shaak Ti spoke.

"Master Yoda, the galaxy has rejected us. Why must we stay connected?"

"The galaxy, around it will come. Until then, our duty we must do."

"Then where should we go?" Stass Allie asked.

"Know that, I do not. Any suggestions, have you?"

"No, Master Yoda."

Obi-Wan shifted on his box. "Queen Breha of Alderaan has offered us her protection."

He got several startled looks, but Ki-Addi Mundi was the first to speak. "How does she know about us?"

"Her Jedi advisor told her before he left. I went to her for information, because I trusted her and I could think of nowhere else to go. I believe her offer is genuine."

There was another silence before Shaak Ti spoke again. "Well, Master Yoda? Will we take up on their offer?"

"Discuss that, we will. Time to decide, it is not."

* * *

The golden afternoon light washed over the balcony. Anakin and Padmé sat there, enjoying the moment of peace.

"You know, that conversation didn't go too badly," Padmé said.

"No. I doubt they'll get used to it anytime soon, but at least they've accepted it for now."

"And now we're safe."

"Yes. Mostly."

"Mostly. Always mostly. The Republic's still chasing Jedi, including you, and I'm still a target. But the galaxy will forget about us. They've got other things to worry about."

Anakin was quiet for a moment. "I hope you're right."

"Oh, come on. You really think we'll be important? The war's almost over, and everyone's glad to see its end. They won't spend much time thinking about us."

"I don't know. The Republic just outlawed all their best generals. They might lose their advantage, and the Trade Federation has some very strong defensive positions, if they-"

"Maybe the war isn't over, but it doesn't matter to you anymore, nor to me. Naboo's a long way from the war, and we're just ordinary citizens now. Do try to remember."

He smiled. "Oh, all right. Isn't that sunset pretty?"

* * *

Shaak Ti sat by a viewport, gazing out at the distant sun, and the stars around it.

She'd never expected to be very important. Even as a council member, she assumed she'd be forgotten. Just one mediocre name in a long, long list. Nothing to be glanced at twice.

Now, suddenly, she was in the middle of history.

Even if the Jedi reclaimed their place, this time would be remembered forever. Young Jedi would study it in ages to come. They would study _her _actions. That was not what she'd bargined for.

It was unbecoming to complain. She would deal with what she'd been given. This was a dark time for the Jedi, but they'd rise again. She would do her best to help them.

They would rise again, and they'd be greater than ever.


End file.
